The good news is you now have three extra months to file your taxes. The bad news is that scammers now have even more time to target you with phone calls and phishing schemes.
Adam Levin, co-founder of Credit.com and founder of Cyberscout, says people are already receiving calls and emails pretending to be from the IRS.Â
Levin says most scams come down to trying to get your personal or financial information. He says one of the most important things you can do is to avoid giving out any information in an interaction that you did not initiate. He also says most scams can be avoided by just taking a second to think.Â
"You have to ask yourself, 'Is this the normal way that this particular institution would be contacting me in the first place?' And I can assure you that federal and state taxing authorities aren't sending you email, aren't sending you texts and aren't calling you on the telephone," Levin says.Â
Check out this video to learn about how to protect yourself and other ways Levin says scammers are targeting filers and even tax preparers.Â
More from Invest in You:
'Predictably Irrational' author says this is what investors should be doing during the pandemic
Coronavirus forced this couple into a 27-day quarantine amid their honeymoon cruise
How to prepare for a family member with COVID-19
SIGN UP: Money 101 is an 8-week learning course to financial freedom, delivered weekly to your inbox.
Disclosure: NBCUniversal and Comcast Ventures are investors in Acorns.
